Washington DC is a planned city, as everyone knows. Peter L’Enfant’s plan from 1791 continues to guide the city even today, and changes to its streets are often allowed or denied based on a couple of lines drawn on parchment over 220 years ago. Which is why it is so surprising to be walking around […]
Spending the week on a jury made me wonder about some famous DC trials, and the jurors who sat on them. This reminded me of George A. Bohrer, a long-time Capitol Hill resident, DC Councilmember, Alderman, Justice of the Peace, and city assessor – and member of the jury before whom John H. Surratt was […]
As we lift a glass of pumpkin beer while we watch our kids scarf even more candy today to celebrate Halloween, let’s take a moment to think back to a far darker and sadder Halloween, one that seemed to be the last time – ever – that you could enjoy said pumpkin beer, or any […]
Last week, we looked at Thomas Edison’s failed attempt to get Congress to change its ways and vote electronically. Nonetheless, it was clearly an idea that needed to be implemented at some point, and so today we’ll look at some of the further attempts made to improve the way that Congress votes.
Electronic voting as a means of choosing elected officials has not taken this country by storm, and in fact may be on the wane. Issues with accuracy and transparency have dogged these machines from the outset. But there is one group that has been using such automated systems without problems for over 40 years: Congress […]